Buffalo, N.Y. (WGR 550) – Thursday will be Devon Levi’s first season opener in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres, as he will face the New York Rangers in Downtown Buffalo.
After Levi finished his 2022-23 season with Northeastern University, he signed his entry-level contract the Sabres and played seven games. It was significant, because Buffalo was in the middle of a playoff race, and you could say they were the most important games this franchise has played in 12 years.
The 21-year-old went 5-2-0 in that stretch with Buffalo, registering a 2.94 goals-against average and .905 save percentage.
Now with a new season upon us, Levi can’t wait for the puck to drop on Thursday.
"I’ll have goosebumps, for sure," said Levi following practice on Wednesday. "It’s so special, so exciting. The home and season opener in front of a packed arena. You can’t really write a better story than that."
Levi feels honored to be seen as the next up-and-coming talent in goal after thinking about former Sabres goalies like Dominik Hasek, Ryan Miller and Tom Barrasso.
“It’s an honor to be the next guy up, and give everything I have to try to live up to what they did," Levi said. "But that’s ahead of myself. I just need to get ready for this game."
Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams has mentioned many times if the team plays better defensive hockey, then the goalies will be better.
Buffalo led the NHL last year in giving up odd-man rushes. They averaged over six per-game, but Levi says look to the crease if you want it to be better.
"Definitely part of that is on me. I’m the guy if there’s a breakdown to stop the pucks. That’s just my focus," he said.
Sabres head coach Don Granato has a different mission for his players. It has to do with improving the team defense.
"We need to bring greater attention and focus to defensive details," said Granato. "Behind the scenes, we will have a better focus on defensive aspects, and we can clean up things just by focusing and concentrating better."
Levi values the time he spent in Buffalo at the end of last season, because he got the chance to meet and compete with his new teammates. Levi had played on Team Canada with Peyton Krebs and Jack Quinn before, but they all played for Canada and won a gold medal at this year’s IIHF World Championship.
"We definitely went to war together, and that special connection bonds you," Levi said. "There’s a level of respect that I want to do this for you, so when that goes around the locker room, it’s a pretty powerful thing."
Goaltenders don’t usually jump from college hockey right into the No. 1 spot with an NHL team. Barrasso, of course, went from high school hockey to the NHL and won the Calder Trophy as the NHL's Rookie of the Year. Levi says you never know how all this will work out.
"You never know how the road is going to go. I could’ve never pictured everything happening like this. I just had the goal and knew I was going to get there one way or another," he said. "I didn’t know how, didn’t know when, I just believed it will happen eventually. It happened sooner or later, and I’m just so excited to be here to play the Rangers."
The last time the Sabres played a regular season game was April 14 in Columbus against the Blue Jackets. Granato is happy his group is getting things going again.
"It’s exciting to get the process going, and guys have had a lot of pent up energy, excitement and adrenaline for the opener. It’s nice to get started and back into a rhythm," he said.
When it comes to age, Buffalo is the youngest team in the league. However, Rasmus Dahlin has already played 355 games, Tage Thompson has played 301 games, Henri Jokiharju has played 273, Dylan Cozens has played 201 and Casey Mittelstadt has played 277.
"I got on our guys really hard with about 20 games left and said, 'Young is getting old,' meaning I’m sick of hearing that we’re young," Granato said. "These guys have gained a lot of NHL experience."
It looks like Jacob Bryson and Tyson Jost are the healthy scratches for Thursday night's opener.
Join Schopp and the Bulldog for pregame coverage on WGR starting at 6 p.m. ET when you’ll hear from Granato, Thompson and Levi.
